BEST to launch app that will show how long you have to wait for your bus in Mumbai, soon

The mobile app is a part of the Intelligent Transport Management System and will be launched in January 2019

GPS chips will be installed in BEST buses to determine their exact location. (HT File Photo)

You will be able to figure out how long you have to wait at the bus stop for your bus from next year, as the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking has decided to introduce a mobile phone application that will provide commuters real-time updates.

The app is a part of the Intelligent Transport Management System (ITMS), which on Tuesday received a go-ahead from the BEST committee.

The app, to be made available from January 2019, will provide information on the arrival time of buses for the next 15 to 20 minutes, the capacity of the buses, which will help determine if they are full, as well as the number of buses plying on specific routes. This information will also be shown on display panels at bus stops for those who have not downloaded the app.

Under the ITMS, GPS chips will be installed in buses to determine their exact location.

“We are planning to introduce the system within nine months after the work order is issued,” said Surendra Bagde, general manager, BEST.

The app will be useful for the BEST management too, which will be able to keep track of bus movements, schedules, drivers and conductors operating the buses and details about Wifi and CCTV on buses.

It will start by installing the chips in 400 buses, of its fleet of 3,300, and the information will be displayed at 200 bus stops. The cost of implementing the project has been estimated at Rs112 crore.

The ITMS will be managed by a contractor for five years, and funds for the project will be provided by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.